𝓲𝓽'𝓼 𝓯𝓪𝓷𝓽𝓪𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓬

Ken had gotten the swim shorts just for Barbie to notice. He had been planning it perfectly and knew that eventually he would casually stroll out to her someday. Today was his lucky day because he played it right and there she was, looking at him like he was doing something right. He beamed at her. He couldn’t help himself. He hadn’t even planned on being here for more than a few minutes and now he could spend the entire day here if that was what Barbie wanted. If she wanted him around at all, of course. “It is new. I got it off of my last ad. I had a feeling you would like it.” His grin turned a little cheeky as he got closer to her. “I can take it off though, if that’s something you want to. I mean…I bet it would look a lot better on the floor….”

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He was always dressed well, that being one of the things that initially drew her to him. Of course there had been a lot more things not but he had a gift for spotting style. Barbie asked for his advice on many of her outfit choices, needing a second opinion she trusted when she second guessed herself. She moved her sunglasses down to get a better look before pushing them back into place. “Did you? Huh, well, I’m glad you kept it. Gives a nice view,” the girl said as she leaned back into her chair and laid herself out to continue to tan. His next comment didn’t even phase her, Ken always wanting their next destination to be the bedroom. He had one thing on the mind but she was quick to bring him back down. “I’m sure it would look good there too but I have an hour and a half to sit here in the sun and do absolutely nothing before I have to get on for a meeting. As much fun as I’m sure we’d have, the sun sets in a few hours and I know who’s bed you’ll be in tonight so we can reconvene then.” She patted the chair next to her without looking away from the sky.

Teagan had been a fan of Barbie Cosmetics for as long as she could remember, since the brand had launched, so it was only natural that she would say yes to a collaboration with her. In her eyes, Barbie was like the ultimate girlboss, building a brand that strove to empower women and deliver quality cosmetics. Teagan wanted to build her own following, too, away from being one of the racers and into being just Teagan. It was always good to have a contingency plan. Taking the tube of lipstick into her hand, she swiped it on her wrist with a bright smile. “Oh, you know me so well. This is fabulous,” she gushed, dropping the tube into her bag. “I have the perfect top this would go with next time I go out. I can even do a before and after at the beginning and end of the night to show how long it stays.”

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To Barbie one of the things that made makeup so fun was that she got to see all the different ways everyone used it. She felt like she was watching an artist at work when she’d see elaborate looks online using her products. A canvas didn’t always have to be one thing, it could be on one’s face and their paint a tube of liquid lipstick. It was people like Teagan who had the eye to spot the right look and Barbie was quick to pick up on that. “Are you kidding? It’s like your signature pink. Everyone has a power color,” she said matter of factly. In fact, Barbie had her own shade of pink that she considered hers. Every time she wore it she felt a little more confident, like if she was going to do something she might as well do it in style. “Stop, that is perfect.” Barbie was glad to have someone that understood her so well helping her with marketing. “If that’s the case you know I have to give you our setting spray too,” she said reaching over into another box to grab a bottle for her. “This is a new formula, let me know how you like it. This one I wanted some sparkle so there’s the teeny tiniest little amount of glitter in there, just for a little extra shimmer.” 

After work sometimes she needed a little down time and her favorite bartender was probably already expecting her. Alex was the only one who knew her by name and kept her company when she came in to sip on a Dirty Shirley while they vented about their days. Barbie tried to be a positive person but when it came to Alex he just brought it out of her. It felt like whenever she was around him she couldn’t help to feel the negativity that she fought off most of the time.  Alex made it feel like she could be honest about it here without anyone else finding out she wasn’t always the picture perfect girl she liked to appear to be. Even Barbie had bad day’s sometimes. 

She sat down at the bar, placing her purse on the chair beside her while letting out a heavy sigh. Since it was a week day the place was pretty dead, just the way she liked it when she came after work like this. When she saw him she gave a small wave as he approached her seat. “The usual, please,” she said giving him a little smile while she leaned her chin onto her palm. “Could I have two cherries in it tonight? I think I need the extra one today.”

He’d been over many times before for one of the infamous parties they liked to throw here, Kit always being on the guest list. Barbie thought of Kit as practically part of their little family in a weird way. It was never weird when they hung out while Ken was or if she called him to come help her pick out the right wine for the dinner she was having her parents over for. They cared about the details and the last thing she wanted was to mess up something as simple as the wine fitting the meal. “What do you think? My mom’s going to want fish because it’s low in fat or whatever and my dad will take his steak rare like he always does, like he has something to prove,” she said with a heavy exhale. As much as she loved her parents it wasn’t always easy. They bickered, they were particular, and that included with their daughter. “She’ll want a white, he’ll want a red. Thoughts?”

This wasn’t the first time she’d brought Teagan in to talk about things, knowing she was already promoting Barbie’s line of makeup and skincare before she ever even asked. It was a genuine find to meet someone that was not only amazing with a makeup brush but also had a knack for marketing as well. She’d already sent Teagan a care package with some of Barbie’s personal favorite products, now wanting to bring her into the office itself for a tour. Not to mention helping her pick out a few goodies to take home for herself. “This lipstick is like my absolute favorite formula, it is drink proof, kiss proof, and makes your lips so soft. Way too many liquid lipsticks just flake off and dry out your lips so fast I was not going to let that happen,” she said holding out one for the girl to try. “And I think this shade of pink was like meant for you.”

She’d been feeling a little low on some sunshine lately, needing something to help bring back some of the glow in her skin. When she got overworked she always felt it and the best remedy for when she felt a little run down was hanging by the pool. Taking a break was sometimes just as important as working or so she’d come to realize over the years. That didn’t mean that it wasn’t hard to keep from looking at her phone. Even when she was just scrolling she had to force herself to turn it off and set it face down on. That’s when Ken came out to join her, making it all the easier to not be tempted to look at it. “Oh, that color looks great with your skin tone,” she said with a firm nod. “Is that new?”